LOWELL BAKER on sat 1 dec 01
I have returned from a ten day mostly working trip to Guatemala. I
was there representing the Partners of the Americas and meeting
with Ron Rivera of Potters for Peace. It would take more time than
I have this morning to tell you all we did and to thank all of the
people who helped get me there and accomplish the work I was
able to accomplish. Besides the organizations, I have to thank a
few of our own. First of all Merrie Boerner, and of course Bill for
offering lodging and navigational help in New Orleans when I found
my Passport had expired. The great folks at the airports who
inspected and allowed me to taste all of the chemicals I took with
me. Finally the 25 or so Guatemalans who showed up for the
workshop.
Ron and Melinda Collins are in a class by themselves. They were
the perfect hosts and the most knowledgable materials prospectors
I could have hoped to find. Should any of you be interested in a
long term apartment rental in Antigua, I highly recommend their's.
The view out the window is a perfectly framed El Agua volcano and
it only gets better from there.
We built a small cast kiln from cheap local materials, constructed
a propane burner from available parts and fired it to cone 7. This
kiln is based in my 1976 CM article on sawdust firing. I talked with
Melinda about the glazes she is getting from local materials and
some other very exciting work she is doing and will submit for
publication soon. I will not talk about this work until she gets it
out, but it is very new to me, and I have been around the block a
few times. So, Melinda, get to work..... In many respects Melinda
is truly a frontier potter; and by the way doing beautiful work.
We went to Panajachel and saw the water filter projects of Potters
for Peace, as well as got to meet Ken Edwards and Nancy
Bingham. We visited two shops in Antigua where lead is still the
primary component of glazes in tiles and some functional ware.
Both of these shops are up stream from most of the town of
Antigua. There is a lot to do in Guatemala now that I have some
small clue to the lay of the land. I did not have time to even begin
glaze testing. That will have to wait for next time.
I have not lost my taste for travel, but I can certainly say that
getting there is no longer half the fun. Being there with good
people and great talk about clay makes it worthwhile.
W. Lowell Baker
The University of Alabama
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